Food, Recipes

Everything Cookies Recipe

Two images of a white woman standing in front of an oven holding a tray of cookies

If you scroll back through the Recipes section of this website, you’ll mostly find dishes inspired by my travels. Bagels from New York, chocolate cake from Sweden, pancakes from Denmark, waffles from Belgium, pistachio ice cream from Italy… Are you sensing a theme here? I love bread and I have a major sweet tooth. But …

Charlotte, Destinations, Food, North Carolina, Restaurant Roundups and Reviews, Travel, USA

10 Great Meals in Charlotte for Under $10

Alyssa stands in front of the sign outside of Yume

Can I tell you something? I kind of love talking about money. Not in the sense of investments or stocks, but how we use it every day. It’s taboo, I know—but spending money is something we all do. And I think the world would be a better place if there was a little more open …

Home Try On + In-Depth Style Reviews, Style, Travel, Travel Tips

Why Black Skinny Jeans are Still My Go-To Denim for Travel, Featuring Mott & Bow

A white woman stands on the ledge of a fountain wearing a black top, black jeans, a grey sweater blazer, and black oxfords. In the background is the Charlotte skyline

Yes, yes, skinny jeans are no longer de rigueur, but that doesn’t mean they deserve to be banished from your wardrobe entirely (and let’s be real, does anyone truly follow every fleeting trend to the letter?). And despite the “throw out your skinny jeans” rhetoric on social media, clothing isn’t disposable—if you’re considering parting ways …

Charlotte, Destinations, Food, North Carolina, Restaurant Roundups and Reviews, Travel, USA

Charlotte Restaurant Review: Bardo

Alyssa walks underneath the sign for Bardo in Charlotte

2023 Update: Bardo is now closed and the space is now Blue Door, a cocktail lounge from the owners of Trio Nightclub. Bardo is a restaurant that has been on my radar since Michael and I first moved to Charlotte at the end of 2019; I can say we quite literally stumbled across it thanks …

Travel, Travel Products

Away Everywhere Bag Review + Packing Tips

Alyssa stands in the left of the frame, wearing a black sweatshirt, blue jeans, tan belt, and a green scarf. She is carrying the Everywhere Bag from Away on her left shoulder

Note: this is a review of the Original Everywhere Bag; Away has since updated this bag slightly, but most of the information here still applies. How much testing time is needed before a review of a product can be properly written? A month? Three months? Longer? Hopefully, two and a half years of consistent use …

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Five More Easy Swaps I’ve Made to Reduce Waste

Two lint removers: one reusable one, and one with replaceable sticky sheets

One frequent New Year’s Resolution (or intention) on many people’s lists this year is to make an effort to be more sustainable. It’s a daunting task, really. Monumental. But you should know that the fate of the planet doesn’t rest solely in your hands (although the manufacturers of the world would like you to think …

Home, Reflections

Setting Intentions for a New Year: 2022 Edition

Alyssa holds a bottle of wine that reads "pet nat"

*pops cork* Happy New Year! If you stayed up to watch the clock turn from yesterday to today, I hope you were able to sleep in a bit this morning. I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling pretty grateful to be alive and well today in this new year. And I’m also thanking my …

Home, Reflections

2021: Year in Review

I think we can all agree on one thing: it’s been a year. As I reflect on 2021, it’s easy to get lost in the bad. Between the continuation (and mutation) of COVID-19, still-unresolved social justice issues, and disastrous effects of climate change, there is a lot to be frightened and angry about in the …

Home Try On + In-Depth Style Reviews, Style, Travel, Travel Products, Travel Tips

Choosing the Right Jewelry for Travel, Featuring GLDN

Alyssa stands in a beam of sunshine, wearing a navy silk short sleeve dress, and a pendant necklace with two mini hoops in her right ear. She is pulling her hair out of the way and smiling downward

When we pack for a trip, we largely consider the essentials: IDs, cards, and currency. Medication. Clothing. Shoes. Toiletries. But we often leave one category for last, if we even consider it at all: Jewelry. Just because something is small doesn’t mean it should be an afterthought. The jewelry we choose to pack and wear …